RATNA SINGH

An excellent albeit not-so-renowned yoga guru came to my place not long ago. She was everything a yoga guru ought to be. Humane, kind, self-aware, humble and in sync with the ancient Vedic rhythm of life.  Having recently lost my mother, I was in considerable distress; invisible to the common eye, but not to be missed by this guru. This proved a lucky meeting for I was able to gain excellent insight on my own self.  Among other things, she said I must hug a tree. Sounded easy enough. 

I had in the past done tree hugging as a group activity. Organized by the company Human Resources (HR) Department for employee well-being. They were awkward affairs; one was terribly conscious during the tree hugging while the rest of the team looked on. Besides there was considerable pressure to extoll how good one felt post the hugging. Most were glad once it was done, to have the HR off our backs and crowd around the coffee machine giggling about how ridiculous it all was. 

But this here was different. I now live beside a jungle with a patch of dense forest surrounding my home. I could hug a tree without anyone watching. ‘’It might be nice,’’ I thought. 

So, early the next morning I set off, as I usually do; to take a round of my grounds. It’s a leisurely stroll and I weave through hundreds of trees, literally. I could just pick one and hug away. Turns out, it was more difficult than it sounded. 

Which tree must I choose? The tall majestic Sal; the classic tree shaped Mahua, the fragrant fruiting wild Mango or Jamun?. Almost instantly I settled on the Sal. Since the tree was going to soak up my anxiety I began carefully picking  eligible trees. 

“How about this one, it's gigantic. Surely it won’t even notice a bit of additional worry.”

“No, it looks about a century old, I’m sure this Sal has seen much and has other more important things to worry about, I can’t burden it further.’’ 

‘’This one is slender and young, but can I load it with additional stress? Will it stunt its growth? 

And the chatter in my mind continued in the same vein for a while. 

“That one is too branched’’, "This one has got some angry looking red ants crawling all over the trunk”. 

‘’This one here has an abandoned termite mound on the roots, it’s possible a snake or a monitor lizard are inside’’. 

It was really getting difficult, and worse, I had almost completely circled my home and would be at my front door in a few minutes. 

‘’Alright, the next decent Sal”, and without much ado I settled on one.  

I felt mildly silly wrapping my arms around the trunk, but it helped that there were no spectators except Shadow & Lily, the pups. The fissured bark was rough on my cheek. I could see various small creatures & a wooly caterpillar having a busy morning. 

“I should probably take off my shoes, to ground myself.” The idea was quickly discarded. The earth was a carpet of fallen leaves, a wonderful hideout for snakes, scorpions, and the like. ‘’This is not one bit helpful,’’ I thought irritably and closed my eyes. 

I stood a few moments thus. My awkwardness slowly ebbed. A feeling of tranquility began to seep into my being.  

With both parents gone, one ceases to be anyone’s child. It was a deeply saddening thought. My eyes welled.  I remained motionless till my mind emptied of all thought. 

I was brought back to my surroundings by a gentle rustling of leaves. A slender Keelback (a harmless snake) was gliding toward me. I held my breath, taking care not to make any movement. The little snake gently glided over my boot and carried on its way. 

 I felt a childlike exhilaration at this interaction. ‘’These mighty trees are like parents in a way, selfless and giving unconditionally,” I philosophized. Instantly, I could picture my parents’ reactions. Mama, ever the practical one, would have rolled her eyes while my father would have nodded sagely in agreement. Picturing their reactions made me chuckle. As I walked on from the Sal, I was smiling.